CAA NEO Gets Green to Celebrate Ontario 150

Thursday, May 18 2017

The Club recently got down and dirty to support Forests Ontario and the Ontario provincial government’s “Green Leaf Challenge.”
Read on for more.

by Mary Wimmer

As part of the Forests Ontario and the provincial government’s Green Leaf Challenge,
CAA North & East Ontario (CAA NEO) was proud to roll up its sleeves and get dirty at a recent community tree planting
in Sudbury. More than 300 volunteers met with CAA NEO and Forests Ontario representatives in Kivi Park for a marathon
event that saw 10,000 native seedlings planted by the day’s end.

“CAA NEO is proud to sponsor the Kivi Park tree planting in partnership with Forests Ontario. Keeping our communities green
is a top priority for our Members, who have helped to plant thousands of trees in communities across Ontario in the past
several years,” says Christina Hlusko, President and CEO of CAA NEO. “An event like this is a great way to bring together
families, community members, and volunteers to make a positive impact on our public spaces, as well as a practical way
to protect our environment by offsetting carbon emissions.”

The Green Leaf Challenge invites Ontarians to plant three million trees this year, to celebrate the province’s 150th birthday.
CAA NEO is one of many businesses taking part in it by supporting planting events in public spaces across the province.
In fact, CAA NEO has supported and participated in plantings in North Bay, Nipissing, and Sudbury since 2013; as part
of its ongoing commitment to enhancing forest cover in northern Ontario.

Overall, the Green Leaf Challenge will have a significant impact on Ontario’s air quality by adding new forest cover that
will remove approximately 6.6 million tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere by 2050.

“CAA NEO’s support contributes to a legacy that will positively affect the lives of Ontarians for generations,” says Rob
Keen, CEO of Forests Ontario. “CAA NEO’s ongoing commitment to increasing tree cover across urban landscapes not only
fosters a resilient ecosystem more capable of withstanding the effects of climate change, but also serves to build stronger
communities by adding more green space, creating more opportunities to interact with nature.”

CAA NEO thanks all volunteers who took part in the community tree planting at Kivi Park, as well as Forests Ontario and the
Ontario provincial government for being able to support this worthy initiative.

Want to get your hands dirty for the good cause? Ontarians are invited to participate by adding any trees they plant to the
online tree counter here.

CAA North & East Ontario serves Members in Ontario in the cities of North Bay, Ottawa, Sudbury and Thunder Bay; the Districts of Cochrane, Manitoulin, Nipissing, Parry Sound, Rainy River, Timiskaming, and Kenora (including area of Patricia); and the Counties of Dundas, and Glengarry, including the portion of Leeds-Grenville formerly known as Grenville County, Lanark, Prescott, Renfrew, Russell, and Stormont.